Tweet
LARGE-SCALE AGGRESSION AGAINST ARMENIA AND ARTSAKH EXPECTED
Haikazn Ghahriyan, Editor-in-Chief
Comments - 30 March 2015, 13:26
The chairman of the Russian Duma Committee for CIS States, Eurasian
Integration and Relations with Compatriots Leonid Slutsky announced
in Yerevan that during Putin's visit to Armenia on April 24 the two
presidents will discuss the Karabakh issue.
"I believe that during the visit to Yerevan for the memorial events to
mark the Centenary of the Armenian Genocide Vladimir Putin and Serzh
Sargsyan will discuss this problem no less deeply than in August 2014
in Sochi," Slutsky said.
What happened in August in Sochi? Putin met with Serzh Sargsyan
and Aliyev. Prior to that meeting Azerbaijan had caused escalation
on the borders, and the Armenian side undertook punitive measures,
hitting heavily the Azerbaijani positions and occupying new positions.
After the August victory of the Armenian army the representatives of
stakeholder countries visited the Armenian Ministry of Defense and
adopted joint statements. The operation of the Armenian army caused a
wide reaction of the international community because the Azerbaijani
side was pointed out as responsible.
Azerbaijan initiated that escalation with Moscow's guidance, which
became clear during the August war. In order not to let the situation
get out of control Putin hurried to organize the meeting in Sochi,
during which, unlike the international community, Azerbaijan's
operations were not assessed, and he tried to own the "peacemaker's"
laurels. This is normal because Russia had multibillion agreements
with Azerbaijan. Besides, by boosting pressure on Armenia through
Azerbaijan Putin hoped to force the consent to station Russian troops
in Karabakh out of the Armenian side.
The accurate actions of the Armenian army thwarted this
Russian-Azerbaijani plan, the Armenian military announced that there
is no need for the military force of a third country.
The "peace" established by Putin lasted less than a month. Moscow and
Baku did not give up on their plan, and after the meeting in Sochi
Azerbaijan, with Russia's help, adopted a new tactics, and started
using new weapons at the border, about which the Armenian military
have stated for many times.
Then Azerbaijan hit the Armenian helicopter, and now a few days
ago Azerbaijan launched a large-scale reconnaissance-in-force in the
northeast of Artsakh, killing four Armenian soldiers. This was preceded
by Serzh Sargsyan's statement that Russian weapons kill our soldiers,
which is a concern.
Along with Azerbaijan's actions Moscow is intensifying propaganda
for the stationing of troops in Artsakh. The latest example is
Zhirinovsky's scandalous statements.
Ostensibly, judging by the policy conducted by Baku and Moscow,
the escalation at the border will continue until Putin's visit, and
Azerbaijan will attempt several large-scale attacks. Over this time,
according to expert studies, Moscow has armed Azerbaijan, scaling
the balance of forces towards Baku.
Moscow denies this, pointing to the weapons in the base in Gyumri
but those weapons do not belong to Armenia and will never be used
against Azerbaijan, as Russian high-ranking military and political
officials have assured.
What will Sargsyan and Putin talk about in Yerevan? According to
Slutsky, they are going to discuss the Karabakh issue as deeply
as in Sochi. At that time no details of the meeting in Sochi were
published but, apparently, there were no significant talks there. The
only significant thing is that Putin will continue to "persuade"
the Armenian side to deploy Russian troops in Karabakh.
It goes without saying that it will indicate the gradual loss
of Karabakh. Everyone can remember the early 1990s when the
Russian-Azerbaijani forces displaced dozens of Armenian settlements,
affecting thousands of Armenians. Now Russia is close to an alliance
with Azerbaijan and Turkey, and there is no doubt that this policy
will continue.
Can the Armenian side resist? Moscow pressured on Armenia from
different sides, giving Azerbaijan an advantage in terms of its
arsenal. On the other hand, Armenia seems to have agreed with China
on military assistance, which, if implemented, will enable restoring
the military balance. Is this enough for a country in international
isolation?
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/comments/view/33851
From: A. Papazian
Haikazn Ghahriyan, Editor-in-Chief
Comments - 30 March 2015, 13:26
The chairman of the Russian Duma Committee for CIS States, Eurasian
Integration and Relations with Compatriots Leonid Slutsky announced
in Yerevan that during Putin's visit to Armenia on April 24 the two
presidents will discuss the Karabakh issue.
"I believe that during the visit to Yerevan for the memorial events to
mark the Centenary of the Armenian Genocide Vladimir Putin and Serzh
Sargsyan will discuss this problem no less deeply than in August 2014
in Sochi," Slutsky said.
What happened in August in Sochi? Putin met with Serzh Sargsyan
and Aliyev. Prior to that meeting Azerbaijan had caused escalation
on the borders, and the Armenian side undertook punitive measures,
hitting heavily the Azerbaijani positions and occupying new positions.
After the August victory of the Armenian army the representatives of
stakeholder countries visited the Armenian Ministry of Defense and
adopted joint statements. The operation of the Armenian army caused a
wide reaction of the international community because the Azerbaijani
side was pointed out as responsible.
Azerbaijan initiated that escalation with Moscow's guidance, which
became clear during the August war. In order not to let the situation
get out of control Putin hurried to organize the meeting in Sochi,
during which, unlike the international community, Azerbaijan's
operations were not assessed, and he tried to own the "peacemaker's"
laurels. This is normal because Russia had multibillion agreements
with Azerbaijan. Besides, by boosting pressure on Armenia through
Azerbaijan Putin hoped to force the consent to station Russian troops
in Karabakh out of the Armenian side.
The accurate actions of the Armenian army thwarted this
Russian-Azerbaijani plan, the Armenian military announced that there
is no need for the military force of a third country.
The "peace" established by Putin lasted less than a month. Moscow and
Baku did not give up on their plan, and after the meeting in Sochi
Azerbaijan, with Russia's help, adopted a new tactics, and started
using new weapons at the border, about which the Armenian military
have stated for many times.
Then Azerbaijan hit the Armenian helicopter, and now a few days
ago Azerbaijan launched a large-scale reconnaissance-in-force in the
northeast of Artsakh, killing four Armenian soldiers. This was preceded
by Serzh Sargsyan's statement that Russian weapons kill our soldiers,
which is a concern.
Along with Azerbaijan's actions Moscow is intensifying propaganda
for the stationing of troops in Artsakh. The latest example is
Zhirinovsky's scandalous statements.
Ostensibly, judging by the policy conducted by Baku and Moscow,
the escalation at the border will continue until Putin's visit, and
Azerbaijan will attempt several large-scale attacks. Over this time,
according to expert studies, Moscow has armed Azerbaijan, scaling
the balance of forces towards Baku.
Moscow denies this, pointing to the weapons in the base in Gyumri
but those weapons do not belong to Armenia and will never be used
against Azerbaijan, as Russian high-ranking military and political
officials have assured.
What will Sargsyan and Putin talk about in Yerevan? According to
Slutsky, they are going to discuss the Karabakh issue as deeply
as in Sochi. At that time no details of the meeting in Sochi were
published but, apparently, there were no significant talks there. The
only significant thing is that Putin will continue to "persuade"
the Armenian side to deploy Russian troops in Karabakh.
It goes without saying that it will indicate the gradual loss
of Karabakh. Everyone can remember the early 1990s when the
Russian-Azerbaijani forces displaced dozens of Armenian settlements,
affecting thousands of Armenians. Now Russia is close to an alliance
with Azerbaijan and Turkey, and there is no doubt that this policy
will continue.
Can the Armenian side resist? Moscow pressured on Armenia from
different sides, giving Azerbaijan an advantage in terms of its
arsenal. On the other hand, Armenia seems to have agreed with China
on military assistance, which, if implemented, will enable restoring
the military balance. Is this enough for a country in international
isolation?
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/comments/view/33851
From: A. Papazian